A Witch Always Comes Back
by xPeppermint
Summary: Elphaba is hoping to stay the night in Arendelle before continuing on her travels, but problems arise when a magic "accident" causes a panic. The townsfolk are prepared to imprison her, but Queen Elsa arrives and extends her welcome- this leads to quite an unlikely friendship.
1. Prologue

**A/N: This is the first fanfic I've written in over a year, guys! I'm going to try to get back into it and update regularly, but truthfully I'm a little rusty. Anyway... I just wanted to point out that this takes place after the end of Wicked- and that's the book, not the musical. So I hope you all enjoy it! ~Pepper. **

She looked strange walking into Arendelle, like a black smudge on an otherwise magnificent pastel painting. Yet the gates were open and the castle yard was buzzing with activity, and that meant Elphaba was free to enter. Thank goodness too, for after having come quite a long way she was very tired and in need of a place to stay- no matter what the townsfolk thought of it. Sure enough, the whispers started the moment the toe of one of her boots crossed the town line. Children pointed their grubby little fingers at her, and exclamations of "Look! A witch!" followed her with each step. There were even a few screeches of horror when two little girls who were tossing coins into a fountain caught sight of her, and quickly abandoned their wishes to go and clutch their mother's skirts. Was she really all that terrifying? Over the years, Elphaba had gotten used to the cruel comments and finger pointing. She wasn't even all that surprised when the little ones fled before her. But she'd be lying if she said that these reactions didn't sting just the slightest bit.

It didn't take Elphaba long to locate Arendelle's inn and its keeper; the sign outside the door swung in the gentle wind and a bearded man worked to clear the snow from its front step. That was going to pose a problem, she thought. The water wouldn't hurt her in its current state, but eventually all snow does turn to puddles. She removed her black pointed hat and tucked a fly-away strand of equally black hair behind her ears. Then she cleared her throat. "How much for one night?" Her voice sounded unfamiliar; it had been so long since she last used it.

The innkeeper, happy for an excuse to take a rest, started to reply: "Oh that'll be-" He hesitated. By then he had turned fully around and taken a moment to look over his possible guest. His eyes roamed her form from pointed face to the tattered bottom of her skirt, his expression falling with every passing second. "Sorry," he said, using a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his brow, "no vacancy."

Elphaba's lips pressed into a hard line. "I have the money," she told him, perhaps a bit too loudly. Several heads turned in her direction, but if she took any notice she failed to show it. "Name your price."

"Sorry," the innkeeper repeated again, shaking his head. "No vacancy."

"No vacancy?" Elphaba repeated through her teeth, which were clenched tight in her anger. She drew herself up to her full height, blocking out the sun and casting a shadow over the inn. She was indeed an awesome, terrifying sight. "Do you happen to know who I am? No?" From her throat she produced a deep, guttural laugh that shook the shutters of the nearby buildings- or were they doing it of their own accord? "I'm the Wicked Witch of the West! Would you still deny me?"

Stunned, the innkeeper failed to answer. He stood frozen before her, unable to move or speak for several moments. When he finally did regain his strength, he pointed a fat finger at her. "Witch!" He exclaimed, eyes darting between all the frightened onlookers in the castle yard. "Witch! Sorceress! Seize her!"

The whole place erupted into panic. Children squealed and ran as fast as they could to their parents, who quickly ushered them out of sight. A few brave souls dared to approach The Witch, but immediately pulled back when the ground began to shake. Arendelle was in chaos, and no force -not even the palace guards, clad in their shining armor- could contain Elphaba. That is, until the doors swung open and a regal figure emerged. Queen Elsa held up her hands and shouted to the masses, "Stop!"

Everyone grew quiet. Two guards managed to grab hold of The Witch's arms, even as she squirmed and did her best to break free. They each gave a nod as their ruler approached them calmly. "To the dungeon with her, my lady?"

"No," she replied. She waved off the guards and curtsied to the stranger, paying no mind to the horrified gasps that came from the gathering crowd. "I am Queen Elsa of Arendelle, and you are invited to stay at the palace for as long as you need."


	2. The Witch and The Queen

The interior of Arendelle Castle was just as busy and boisterous as the exterior, Elphaba noted as she followed her hostess inside. While it wasn't quite as crowded, the servants and visitors scrambled from one room to the next, shouting to one another as they went. A large woman with curly red hair and a face full of freckles even approached the two of them, and shoved a spoonful of yellowish liquid under their noses. "Queen Elsa, I need your approval on the menu. I've made some samples here-"

"Not now, please, Ruthie," replied The Queen. She gave her a kind smile while putting up one of her delicate hands, "I need to show our guest to her room." The woman -presumably a cook- continued to protest even as she scurried away, muttering something to herself that sounded like "No time! No time!"

"I'm sorry about that," Elsa said. She glanced over her shoulder as she continued walking down the main hall, with Elphaba following steadily behind her. "My sister's wedding is in a week and the whole castle has gone a little insane with the preparations. You arrived on the wrong day if you wanted a quiet, relaxing stay- but at least everyone's in a festive mood."

"It's no matter," replied The Witch, clutching her precious Grimmerie to her chest as yet another servant rushed past, nearly running into her. At least in their haste, no one was staring. "I only plan to stay for the night."

"Is that so? Well, you're welcome to stay longer if you should change your mind." At last the pair reached their destination, and The Queen opened an ornately decorated door for her guest. Elphaba noted the incredible contrast between this room and the plain gray one she'd had at Kiamo Ko. This one was vibrant and colorful, and warm despite being made of stone. Paintings lined the walls, and the bed was large and made up with mountains of luxurious sheets, pillows, and blankets. She wondered, though only for a moment, if in some alternate reality this could have been her life. If she hadn't left the university, and traveled all the way to The Emerald City with Glinda. If she hadn't killed Madame Morrible, and had her run in with that bratty child from another land. Her and her stupid little dog.

The Queen cleared her throat, pulling Elphaba out of her thoughts. "Is the room to your liking?" She asked almost shyly, giving her a polite smile.

"Yes," Elphaba returned, "it should be fine."

"Oh, good," said Elsa. The tiniest of sighs escaped her lips. It was one of relief, thought The Witch. "If you need anything, just let one of the servants know. I'll send someone in soon with some water; you must want to clean up after all that traveling."

"No water, thank you." Elphaba went further into the room and started inspecting the place. There was a large fireplace that took up most of one wall, and she liked that. She could picture herself reading in front of it, studying The Grimmerie and trying to make out more of the strange, foreign language in which it was written. She was excited to get a fire going, though the thought of doing it herself brought upon a feeling of sadness. At Shiz, it was always Glinda. She liked to show off by using her magic, as fire starting was the one spell in which she managed to become proficient. Elphaba hated how she'd left things with her.

From behind she heard footsteps, and she turned to see who it was. The Queen was standing by the doorway. Elphaba thought she had already left. "I know this is very personal and not any of my business, but-"

Elphaba arched an eyebrow. She knew where this was going, and she didn't take kindly to people prying into her affairs. However, The Queen amused her for some reason she couldn't quite put her finger on, and she allowed her to continue.

"I was wondering, did you cause all that commotion out there? The ground shaking, I mean. It was very strong; I could feel it all the way in here."

"Of course I did," Elphaba answered. Her voice surprised her yet again; it sounded cool for all the anger that was rising inside of her. At her side, she clenched her green hands into fists, remembering the catastrophe that was her arrival in this town. "I'm a witch, didn't you know? And I'm wicked. A lunatic, even."

She felt the power rise inside her body, filling every vein. She feared a repeat of what happened outside in the castle yard, and yet she couldn't stop herself even when the ground began to quake once again. A painting depicting three cherubs fell off the wall and landed dangerously close to the fire- which was now lit. Elsa's attention was pulled to it for only a moment, before she met eyes with The Witch.

"You can control it."

"No, I can't!" Elphaba screeched. The tremors worsened so much that she had to brace herself on a bed post. "I don't know how!"

Elsa said nothing. Instead, she made her way toward Elphaba, grabbing onto whatever was solid to help her cross the room. Eventually, the only thing to hold onto was The Witch's own hand. She laced her delicate fingers through her long, green ones and looked directly into her eyes. "Yes, you can." Elsa said. A hint of a smile appeared on her face.

"I can teach you."

Everything went still.


	3. An Early Call

"Miss Elphaba?"

Elsa knocked softly on her door and awaited a reply. When none came, she opened it wide enough to peek in her head. Her eyes landed on the bed, where she expected The Witch to be. She wasn't there. "Miss Elphaba?" She repeated. No answer. Elsa widened the opening and slipped inside the room. It was early morning, and the sun had yet to rise. She had to squint in order to make out the figure of her guest, who was sitting in front of a fire that had long since died out. She looked strange. She was crouched on the floor, all of her pointed limbs pulled in tight. Her neck seemed impossibly long as it strained to reach the words inside the book which rested in her lap. Elsa couldn't see what she was reading, but it was clear that she was thoroughly engrossed in it. She cleared her throat to get her attention and placed a hand on The Witch's shoulder.

Her head whipped around almost instantly, startling her. "It's you," she said, lifting her chin to take in the sight of Elsa standing before her. She closed her book and stood, still clutching it to her chest. Then she blinked.

Elsa cleared her throat once more and folded her hands neatly in front of her. "Good morning, Miss Elphaba." She smiled warmly. "I apologize for calling on you so early, but now would really be best the time to leave-"

"Leave?" The Witch's lips curved into an amused smile. "Are the witch hunters marching through the town?"

"Of course not." Elsa's smile faltered, and something inside of her went cold. She knew what it was like to be hunted down, to be hated and feared. Was this the same treatment The Witch had suffered? "I just thought that being away from people would be the best option, until you've learned to control your gift."

"So interesting that you call it that." Elphaba said.

Not knowing how to reply, Elsa simply nodded and continued: "There's a place we can go to be alone, though it's quite a walk, unfortunately. Also I'd advise that you wear something warm."

"I'll be fine, I assure you," said The Witch.

"All right then." Elsa led her guest out of Arendelle castle and through the gates of the town center. When they came upon a vast lake they paused just long enough to Elsa to lightly tap the water with a pointed toe. It turned to ice before their eyes.

For a moment The Witch stood in silence, thinking, presumably. Then she arched an eyebrow and nodded toward The Queen. "Where exactly are we going?"

"Up there," Elsa replied, and she gestured to the white mountain top. The ice castle seemed to be glittering despite the lack of sunlight, and she smiled lightly. "I did mention that it was going to be a bit of a walk."

"Yes," Elphaba mused. She gazed up at the shimmering palace, then reached into her satchel and retrieved the book that was so dear to her, apparently. "I know of a better way. Would you go back to the castle and fetch me a broom?"

"A broom?" Elsa was confused, but she didn't want to sound unpleasant. After all she was a queen and there to serve. "Of course. But why, if you don't mind my asking?"

The Witch turned to her, and there was a mischievous glint in her as she said: "You'll see."


	4. One With the Wind and Sky

Elsa took a few steps back as she had been instructed to do, and watched The Witch go about her work with a great deal of interest. Out came the mysterious book once more, turned to a page with the strangest markings on it. It had to be a different language, she thought to herself, and not one that she'd ever heard of. The Witch moved one of her bony, green fingers down the page and smiled with satisfaction when she found the passage she'd been looking for. Then she got to work.

It all started with her body swaying to a rhythm that only she could hear. The wind whipped her dark hair about her face, and her hands twitched and danced above the broomstick which was lying on the ground at her feet. Then she began to speak, softly at first. The words sounded harsh and totally nonsensical; they reminded Elsa of the magic spells in the storybooks that her parents used to read to her and Anna. But unlike the old crones who stood in place over bubbling cauldrons, Elphaba threw her entire body into the process with an enormous amount of passion and intensity. It was a thrill to watch, almost as though she were doing an ancient dance. Elsa was even slightly disappointed when she finally turned to her, her objective complete.

That is until she realized that the broom, which had been lying completely motionless on the ground, was now doing its own dance. "How did you do that?" She asked, as she took a tentative step toward the twitching broomstick. There was so much more that she wanted to ask, but she knew that she'd only end up sputtering and becoming embarrassed. Obviously this was the result of some sort of magic; the whole reason they were journeying up the mountain was so that Elphaba could learn to control her gift. But what she'd done just then was so vastly different from anything that Elsa was capable of. She could feel the nervousness rising within her, and she did her best to force it back down.

The Witch did not reply to her question. Instead she placed her hand over the broom, and without having to utter another word, it leapt from the ground into her hand. With a dramatic flourish of her cloak, she swung one of her legs over the broomstick and gripped it tightly with one hand. "Get on, behind me."

"Get on?" Elsa repeated. She arched an eyebrow in confusion, then her eyes widened in surprise when she realized that Elphaba was no longer touching the ground. "I don't know if this is the best idea." Her arms instinctively flew to her midsection for comfort, making it seem as though she had shrunk in size.

"This will get us to the mountain faster," said Elphaba. She looked at Elsa expectantly. "I insist you get on." As The Queen continued to show hesitation, her features softened, and she held out her free hand as an offering. "Trust me."

Elsa nodded and did as she was told, a hint of a blush creeping into her cheeks as she straddled the broomstick in a rather unladylike manner. "You're sure this is safe?" She asked. She had to raise her voice in order to be heard over the wind as they rose into the air.

As they headed toward the castle of ice, the broomstick jerked suddenly, eliciting a small "oh," from The Queen, and she wrapped her arms around Elphaba for support.

A hint of a smile graced The Witch's lips as she replied, "perfectly."


End file.
